Food composition containing fusaria



v Patented Sept. 28, 1948 FOOD COMPOSITION CONTAINING FUSARIA FriedrichF. Nor-d, New Yoris, N. 2!.

No Drawing. Application .ianuaryt, 1945,

Serial No. 571,694 r 5 Claims. (oi. so e) The invention relates to a newfood composition to be used much in the same manner and for the samepurposes as the well known yeast'products.

Attempts have been made heretofore to use some molds of the generaAspergillus,Penicil1ium, and related kinds for the production of fats.These experiments had no practical consequences, and the generamentioned above were never used as sources of other food constituents.

The principal object of my invention is to provide a novel foodcomposition from molds which contains valuable nutritious and fortifyingingredients. A further object of the invention is to provide a veryeconomic method of preparing a new mold-containing composition fornutritional and medicinal purposes. Other objects and advantages of theinvention will be apparent hereafter.

I have found that molds of the genus Fusariurri have a composition whichrenders them suitable as a good food basis. Their mycelia contain notonly fats, but proteins and vitamins, particularly members of thevitamin B complex such as thiamin, They have a pleasant stimulating odorwhich makes them readily acceptable as food and overcomes thedifiiculties and objections raised against yeast in a vitamin diet. Afurther advantage of Fnsaria preparations is that they can be led inlarger amounts or proportions than yeast compositions. i

It is well known that brewers yeast at a per cent level in a purifieddiet supports good growth, reproduction, and lactation in mice. Fusariaadequately replace brewers yeast in the synthetic ration and supply thenecessary B complex vitamins, protein and fat. Theiollowing tests areillustrative of the favorable results obtained by the novelfoodcomposition accordin to the invention.

Example 1 A strain of Fusarium lint Bolley (FIB) was grown on anartificial stock culture medium consisting of glucose, potassiumnitrate, primary p0- tassium phosphate, and magnesium sulfate. After agrowth period of three weeks, the mats were removed, washed with water,air dried, and ground up into a powder. This powder was incorporatedinto a; diet as follows:

Per cent Purified casein (Smaco) 25 Sucrose 45 Salts (Osborne andMendel) 5 Fusarium Zim' Bolley (FIBL 10 Crisco '7 Lard 5 Cod liver oil 3As the purpose of these experiments was to determine the possible effectof the members of the vitamin B complex present in Fusaria, the fatsoluble vitamins in the diet were liberally supplied by the lard(linoleicacid), Crisco (vitamin E), and cod liver oil (vitamins A andD).

Eleven weanling mice of two kinds, viz. albino and Rockland blackstrains, were placed on the diet, which proved to be excellent forgrowth in both strains of mice over a period of 30 to 35 days. Thegrowth during this period was superior to that obtained with dietscontaining 10% brewers yeast. The food intake averaged 3 to 3.5 gramsdaily. After the first month on this diet, however, growth fell ofif andan actual loss in weight occurred. The daily food intake dropped to 1 to1.5 grams. Since-a similar loss in appetite had been observed inexperiments on thiamin deficiency, a small supplement of B1 (10micrograms daily) was either injected or fed. An immediate resumption ofgrowth occurred and the food intake was tripled over night. This eiiectvof vitamin E1 is intelligible since FIB contained'about 20 micrograms ofthe vitamin per gram of dried material or approximately 2 micrograms pergram of diet. An effect comparable to the injection of vitamin B1 wasobtained when the amount of FIB in the diet was doubled. Such anincrease of the F13 proportion in the diet was readily accepted.-

Ezrample 2 through growth reproduction and lactation. The vitamincontent of the Fusaria may be enhanced ii the mold is grown on a morecomplete culture medium. The thiamin content can be. of course,increased by adding vitamin Bl to the culture medium.

Example 3 trasted with 45% protein in brewer's yeast. Six

mice fed on this ration grew satisfactorily and compared favorably withthose on a highly purifled ration that contained 15% casein.

This example proved'the adequacy of the protein present in FlB forfeeding purposes. The growth of mice was even better when the level ofFlB in the diet was raised since the 15% protein was supplying just theminimal quantities of the essential amino acids.

There are Fusaria species, e. g. Fusarium graminearum Schwabe, whichcontain less B complex vitamin than Fusarium lini Bolley. If mycelia 01'such a Fusarium are used in food compositions, the vitamin deficiencymust be made up by addition of adequate quantities of members of the Bcomplex family. v

The culture of Fusaria is byiar more simple and economic than thepreparation of yeast. The

Fusarla may be readily grown. for instance, in the course of thealcoholic fermentation of pentoses and hexoses. and sulfite wasteliquors contain abundant quantitles of these carbohydrates andconstitute, therefore, excellent culture media. The mats are removedfrom the culture medium and dried. The dried mycelia may be ground toa'powder which may be mixed with other food constituents, preferablywith carbohydrates in order to balance the high protein content ofFusaria.

- Fusarium lini Bolley is particularly suited for this purpose becauseit has over other Fusaria species the advantage oi growing in coherentmats, which can be readily removed and separated as a whole from theculture medium.

Various changes in the composition of the food product and inthe-procedure described herein may be made without departing irom thescope of the invention as defined in the appended claims. 1

Iclaim:

1. A basal food composition consisting essen- Wastes of wood hydrolysistially of Fusarium lini Bolley as a protein and B-complex vitaminsupplying ingredient, in admixture with other nutritional constituents.

2. A basal i'ood composition consisting essentially of not less than 10percent Fusarium lini Bolley as a protein and B-complex vitaminsupplying ingredient inadmixture with other nutritional constituents.

3. A basal food composition consisting essentially of 10 to 40 percentFusarium lini Bolley as a protein and B-complex vitamin supplyingingredient, in admixture with other nutritional constituents.

4. A method of compounding a basal food composition which comprisesmixing Fusarium lini Bolley as a protein and B-complex vitamin supplyingingredient, with other nutritional constituents.

5 A method. of compounding a basal food composition which comprisesmixing Fusarium lini Bolley, in an amount not less than 10 percent, as aprotein and B-complex vitamin supplying ingredient. with other foodconstltnents.

6. A method of compounding a basal iood composition which comprisesmixing Fusarium uni Bolley, in an amount from 10 to 40 percent, as aprotein and B-complex vitamin supplying ingradient, with other foodconstituents.

FRIEDRICH F. NORD.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis *patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,346,011 Damm Apr. 4, 1944 OTHERREFERENCES Chemical Abstracts 29: 14587; Wilt oi Flax,

